Spoons – The Youth Group Game of All Time

I often have friends in ministry who ask me for directions on games I play and I typically just point them to the site. When a friend asked me about Spoons and I realized I had never mentioned it on this site, I immediately realized how incomplete the game library on here is. So, for those who don’t know, here are the instructions to the youth group game that I take much too seriously!

Supplies Needed

Spoons (one for every person)

Playing Cards

Directions

This game is very simple. It is played like musical chairs where everyone is competing for a spoon and the one person who does not get one is out. You play the game until only one person is left.

It is ideal to play with no more than 8-10 people. If you have more than this, break it in to several games and have a championship table when each group is down to only a few.

Have everyone sit around a table and put one spoon for each person in the middle of the table. Take one spoon out so there is one less spoon than the number of people. Have one person deal four cards to each player. The goal with the cards is to get four of a kind (4 Aces, 4 Kings, etc.) To start the game the dealer will take one card from the remaining deck. They must decide if they want to swap the card out with one of theirs or pass it to the left. If they swap it out, they must pass one of their previous cards to the left, leaving them always with four cards. The person to the left does the same thing with the passed cards and the cards continuously go around the table.

When someone has four of a kind they can grab a spoon. Once one person has four of a kind everyone else can grab a spoon at the same time.

That’s it. Shuffle and deal again, removing one spoon each time and a eliminating a new player!

Eric Gallagher (@ericjgallagher) has over 12 years of experience in full-time youth ministry in the Diocese of Sioux Falls where he currently serves as the Director of Youth Discipleship & Evangelization for the Diocese. Eric is a husband and father of four. He primarily blogs over at DiscipleshipYM.com.